How to Choose Upholstery Fabric

Advice on how to choose a suitable upholstery fabric for your project.

The variety of upholstery fabrics to choose from is extensive, and it’s always best to choose a colour scheme or look to start with as a way to narrow down the options. However there are factors that need considering before buying an upholstery fabric.

Upholstery Fabric with a high Martindale Rub Test

Firstly you need to consider how much use the furniture you are recovering is going to get; for example an occasional chair or headboard gets relatively low wear and tear compared to a sofa in a family living room. The Martindale Rub Test ratings are a good indication as to how hard wearing an upholstery fabric is. Anything from 15,000 is great for dining chairs, headboards and occasional use furniture. Look for 20,000 plus for anything else, and choose 30,000 upwards for high traffic areas. Upholstery fabrics for contract use tend to be 40,000 and above so will be thicker and heavier.

Fire Safety Regulations for Upholstery Fabric

All upholstery fabrics, both domestic use and contract use, must comply with the current fire safety legislations. This means that if you are buying upholstery fabric, you must check If it is fire retardant or if it needs to be treated with an FR coating or used with an FR liner. If you are using a professional upholsterer, then they will advise on which option is best for your piece of furniture.

Consider this: Many of our fabrics are already treated to make them fire retardant.

Upholstery Fabric Compositions

At Just Fabrics we sell lots of FR fabrics, which can be found here. Fabrics that are 100% wool are inherently fire retardant, so don’t need to be treated for domestic use. If choosing wool for contract use however it’s best to check the individual fabrics specifications as it may need further treatment. If an upholstery fabric is less than 75% natural fibres, then it cannot be used with an FR liner and therefore must be treated to the relevant standards.

Having a Non-Fire Retardant Upholstery Fabric Treated

If you select an upholstery fabric that needs to be treated, then we can offer this service at £60.00 for the first 10m and £4.50 for every metre after that. This service takes approximately 10-14 working days. Depending on the end use for the fabric, it will either be dipped or back coated.

Different Styles of Upholstery Fabric

With the huge range of upholstery fabrics available, you’re sure to find a design style that suits your scheme and budget – from traditional tapestries to modern geometric prints.